There are times I love living in my adopted state of New Jersey–please don’t be shocked non-New Jersians (or even New Jersians); all the bad press isn’t true.

However, there are other times when I am reminded that this is a state where grown men hide under beds for days and multi-state car chases occur over stolen supermarket undies.

It is at these times that I ask myself if there is something wrong with me that I purposely select this bunch of weirdos to live amongst.

A Simple Game of Hide and Seek: A Man Stays Under Ex’s Bed for Three Days Before Family Notices

You know why it is always a good idea to check under all of your beds at night?

Because if you don’t, somebody might just live under there for three days without you ever noticing. Which is pretty weird.

Jason Hubbard, of Spotswood, New Jersey, decided that a great place to hang out would be in the spare room of his ex-girlfriend’s family home under the bed where she used to stay. Now, he was savvy enough to realize that if he asked for permission to make his home under there, he might be asked to leave.

They say you should never ask for permission, just forgiveness after you are caught. That is what Hubbard did here. He just waited until someone left the door open to take out the trash, waltzed right in, and got under the bed.

There, he stayed hidden–probably in order to win the world hide and seek record–for three days before he finally messed up. It’s a hider’s job to stay as silent as possible. Hubbard finally made a noise loud enough to get him caught on the third day, and the police were summoned.

What was he doing to pass the time while he hid there? For starters, he was charging his four cell phones.

Playing Keep Away: Man Steals Underwear, Flees from Police

Now, let’s move away from the hiding and move on to the chasing.

The police recently had a fun time chasing a man in a van from New Jersey to Philadelphia to New Jersey to Philadelphia before a police car finally bumped the van and caused it to flip. Why was this, I assume high-speed, chase being conducted, you ask? Good question!

It happened because the man, Robert Ritter, had been spotted shoplifting $21 worth of undies from a Brooklawn, New Jersey supermarket. In my opinion, this might just be the best reason ever for a police chase.

Basically, Ritter spent July 9 stealing a pack of underwear and a pack of t-shirts from a supermarket before shoving a security guard. He escaped, but there was a warrant out for his arrest. Also, there was another warrant out for him for stalking charges.

On Monday, an office saw Ritter chilling in his van so the cop went after the Rain Man of robbers. Ritter fled back and forth from Jersey and Philly until he was finally caught.

One good thing came out of this story, though.

If you have to be taken in to custody and strip-searched, how embarrassing would it be if it happened when you were wearing old undies? Good thing for Ritter he was prepared with his brand new supermarket pair.

New Jersey is a nice, if expensive, place to live. However, that does not mean it is not without its weirdos.

Ashley Shaw

Ashley Shaw is an Alabama native and current New Jersey resident. A graduate of both Kennesaw State University and Thomas Goode Jones School of Law, she spends her free time reading, writing, boxing, horseback riding, playing trivia, flying helicopters, playing sports, and a whole lot else. So maybe she has too much spare time. Contact Ashley at staff@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Weird New Jersey News: Stolen Underwear Police Chase and A Man Who Lived Under a Bed appeared first on Law Street.

Are you missing some excitement in your love life? Do you and your significant other look for different ways to bring that excitement back into your lives? Well if you are thinking about having sex on top of railroad tracks, think of something else.

In an attempt to spice up their sex life, a middle-aged Ukrainian couple decided to make love on top of some railroad tracks near central Ukraine. Aside from giving a whole new meaning to “working on the railroad,”the couple decidedthat reaching their sexual climax was more important than moving out of the way of an oncoming train. A switcher locomotive ran over the couple in the city of Zaporozhye in the early morning of Saturday, September 28, 2013. The woman died instantly and the man lost both of his legs. The man claimed that he and his girlfriend simply wanted to, “…experience an extreme sensation near the railroad tracks,” since they had, “failed to overcome their natural passion.”

It is completely understandable that couples who have been together for a long period of time want to find new ways to experience each other and find “extreme sensations,” (Trojan gets it) but you should be able to do so without risking life and limbs. Are the vibrations of the oncoming train worth losing your life? What do I know, maybe they thought they were dreaming within a dream.

The story unfortunately does not end there. The man could be facing trespassing charges for being on the tracks. It is unlikely that the man has a viable legal defense to the trespassing charges but it made me wonder about the penalties for the same crime elsewhere. In the United Kingdom, trespassing on railway tracks is considered a criminal offense and carries with it a penalty in the form of a fine for £1,000. They go on to explain why it is never a good idea to hop onto the train tracks. For example, they tell you that trains do not stop quickly (DUH!), that by simply standing near a train as it passes the wind turbulence could drag you under the wheels, and that the train runs on electricity and is never switched off (and if you touch it you will be frozen to it).

The United States has similar laws to the UK and the fines are just as expensive if not more. The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) takes railroad safety and trespassing prevention seriously. They claim that over 430 trespassing fatalities and nearly as many injuries occur each year. They offer a workshop to address Right-of-Way fatalities and trespass prevention. They even offer this fact sheet to explain why it’s a very bad idea to trespass on railroad tracks. I guess they forgot to send it to this kid.

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Rob Anthony is a founding member of Law Street Media. He is a New Yorker, born and raised, and a graduate of New York Law School. In the words of Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas, “We need to be bold and adventurous in our thinking in order to survive.” Contact Rob at staff@LawStreetMedia.com.

Featured image courtesy of [Lorenzo Gaudenzi via Flickr]

Robbin Antony

Rob Antony is a founding member of Law Street Media. He is a New Yorker, born and raised, and a graduate of New York Law School. Contact Rob at staff@LawStreetMedia.com.

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